Tom Wopat and John Schneider played rambunctious cousins Luke and Bo on the long-running CBS series “The Dukes of Hazzard.” In real life, their relationship also feels a bit familial.

“We’re friends,” Wopat says. “He’s a good guy. We enjoy seeing each other and we keep in touch, even if we’re not working together.”

Schneider views it a little differently.

“He’s like my much older brother,” he cracks. “Wait, he could be like my younger father. That sounds good. We’ll go with that one.”

That gives you an idea of the off-camera relationship of the two stars: It’s playful and affectionate, but with a good deal of mutual respect. That off-stage camaraderie fuels their live show, which they have been doing off and on for about five years. There is a mix of comedy and music (think show tunes and country). And before you ask, yes, they will sing “Good Ol’ Boys,” the theme to “The Dukes of Hazzard.”

“Not to be corny, but expect the unexpected when you come to see us,” Schneider says. “We’re not what you think, which is the essence of true showmanship. I will say that we’re having a ball on stage, and hopefully everybody watching will, too.”

The two certainly have the chops to pulls off a good show. Post “Dukes,” Wopat, 61, became a Broadway mainstay, earning Tony nominations for “Annie Get Your Gun” and “A Catered Affair.” He also has emerged as a superior jazz singer, with a gruff, scotch-on-the-rocks style that has been featured on four outstanding albums. The latest, “I’ve Got Your Number,” was released this month.

Schneider, 52, launched a country-music career in the ’80s, topping the chart with a handful of tunes; “I’ve Been Around Enough to Know” was his finest moment. He has stayed busy on TV, most notably playing Clark Kent’s dad on “Smallville.” He is currently filming “The Haves and the Have Nots,” a Tyler Perry series that will appear on the Oprah Winfrey Network.

With their impressive resumes, you’d think there might be some resistance at embracing a show that was a something of a live-action cartoon. Heck, there even was a Saturday morning animated version that ran for two seasons, as any die-hard “Dukes” fans could tell you.

“It’s not really the same fans I have from the albums and Broadway, but that’s fine,” says Wopat, whom fan Quentin Tarantino cast in a cameo in “Django Unchained.” “The ‘Dukes’ fans are great. They’re loyal, and they love the show.”

He’s not kidding when he says people love the series. There are annual conventions devoted to “The Dukes of Hazzard” that attract an almost absurdly large number of fans, especially when you consider that the show ended 28 years ago.

“There is really no show like it,” Schneider says. “You’re not going to get 20,000 people to show up for a ‘Brady Bunch’ reunion. You’re not going to get it for ‘Hill Street Blues,’ ‘Barney Miller’ or ‘Seinfeld,’ either. It’s a visceral experience. The fans taste it, feel it and love it.

“Honestly, so do I. There have been other things and other shows in my career, but ‘The Dukes’ will always be the one that is really closest to people’s hearts.”

Perhaps because of the affection the public has shown them, both men are gracious and down-to-earth. Rather than having his publicist schedule an interview, Wopat calls a reporter directly, opening with with a brisk, “Wopat here. Can we talk?” Schneider phones 20 minutes early, apologizes profusely, and then asks if he should call back.

Despite their low-maintenance personalities, Schneider says the two are quite different.

“We’re kind of like Felix and Oscar,” he says. “Tom is a very planned-out sort of guy, and I just wing it. I think I drive him a little crazy sometimes, but I’ve been driving him crazy for a long time, so it’s fun.”

Of course, the two have matured. Wopat called from Green Valley, where he had just appeared in concert. “It was almost all senior citizens there, but who gives a (expletive)? I’m almost there myself,” he happily exclaims.

“Tom’s old, and let’s face it, he’s tired,” Schneider says, joking again. “I have to wake him to do the show. But in the world of John and Tom, he is the one most likely to put a hand out to stop me from doing something stupid.”

Shucks. They kind of are just like Luke and Bo in Hazzard County.

Reach the reporter at randy.cordova@arizonarepublic.com or 602-444-8849. Twitter.com/randy_cordova.

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